In motor vehicles, pedals are often provided to enable a user to communicate with one or more control systems in the vehicle to regulate the power output of the vehicle in accordance with the demand from the user. For example, an accelerator pedal is often provided to enable the user to communicate the amount of desired acceleration to the vehicle controller. Other pedals, such as brake and clutch pedals, may also be provided to enable the user to communicate other operational commands to the system controller. Existing pedals typically use lever style assemblies in which a pedal is mounted to a pivoting arm and is physically depressed by the user to indicate a desire for an operational change, such as increased or decreased power output.
However, the need for the physical displacement of the pedals may result in pedal failure in instances in which the movement path of the pedal is obstructed. Additionally, such lever style assemblies may present additional drawbacks due to their mechanical complexity, which introduces high monetary cost. Accordingly, there exists a need for systems and methods that address these drawbacks with traditional pedals for motor vehicles.